KR20210098346A - Control method and information processing apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a control method implemented in an information processing device by at least one processor executing print control software. The control method comprises the following steps of: registering, in the print control software, a print queue in which first identification information is set; determining whether a device to which the first identification information is set exists on a network to which the information processing device is connected, when a print queue in which the first identification information is set is registered in the print control software; changing identification information of the print queue registered in the print control software from the first identification information to second identification information different from the first identification information when it is determined that the device for which the first identification information is set exists on the network.

Description

CONTROL METHOD AND INFORMATION PROCESSING APPARATUS

The present invention relates to a control method and an information processing apparatus.

There is a technology that provides a standard printing function (hereinafter referred to as an OS standard printing function) using an operating system without using a printer-specific software (hereinafter referred to as a printer-specific driver) provided by a printer vendor (hereinafter referred to as an OS standard printing function) ( See Japanese Patent No. 5806783). The OS determines whether the printer supports the OS standard print function based on the information acquired from the printer, and, if the printer supports the OS standard print function, sends print data generated by the OS standard print function to the printer.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is a control method implemented in an information processing apparatus by at least one processor executing print control software, the control method comprising: a print queue in which first identification information is set in the print control software ), when a print queue in which the first identification information is set is registered in the print control software, determining whether a device in which the first identification information is set exists on a network to which the information processing apparatus is connected; ) registering a virtual printer to which second information different from the first information is set as a virtual printer communicating with standard printing software, and identification of a print queue registered in the print control software when the virtual printer to which the second information is set is registered and changing the information from the first identification information to the second identification information.

Further features of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of exemplary embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of a printing system according to an exemplary embodiment.
Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram showing a printer list screen, a printer registration screen, and a printer setting screen of a print conversion utility.
3 is a schematic diagram showing a printer list screen and a printer registration screen of an operating system (OS) printing system.
Fig. 4 is a schematic diagram showing a print setting screen of the OS print system.
Fig. 5 is a flowchart showing a print queue re-registration process to be performed by the print conversion utility.
6 is a flowchart showing a print queue re-registration process to be performed by the print conversion utility.
Fig. 7 is a schematic diagram showing a screen for prompting a user to change a printer name;
8 is a flowchart showing a print queue re-registration process to be performed by the print conversion utility.
9 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration.

There are cases where the operating system (OS) standard print function is not supported by the printer and therefore the printer cannot interpret the print data generated by the OS standard print function. Also, there is a case where the user wants the printer to perform printing based on more detailed print settings than the OS standard print function even when the OS standard print function is supported by the printer.

Aspects of the present disclosure relate to providing a technique that enables an appropriate print instruction to be issued using an OS standard print function.

Exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. The following exemplary embodiments are not intended to limit the scope of the invention as set forth in the claims, and not all combinations of features described in the exemplary embodiments are necessarily essential to the invention.

1 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of a printing system according to a first exemplary embodiment. A personal computer (PC) 01 is connected to each of the printer 30, printer 40, and printer 50 via a network 20 and communicates with each of these printers. In the present exemplary embodiment, a local area network (LAN) is used as the network 20 , but a wide area network (WAN) may be used instead. The connection configuration of the network may be wired or wireless, or a mixture of the two. The PC 01 controls the printer 30 , the printer 40 , and the printer 50 connected through the network 20 .

<Hardware Configuration>

Here, the hardware configuration of the printing system according to the present exemplary embodiment will be described with reference to the block diagram of FIG. 9 shows an example of a printing system in which the PC 01 serving as a host computer and the printer 30 can communicate with each other. Fig. 9 shows a hardware configuration of the printer 30, and the printer 40 and the printer 50 each have a hardware configuration similar thereto.

The PC 01 is an example of an information processing device. The PC 01 includes a central processing unit (CPU) 201 , a read-only memory (ROM) 202 , a random access memory (RAM) 203 , a display unit 204 , an input unit 205 , and an external storage device. 206 , and an interface (I/F) unit 207 . The PC 01 of this exemplary embodiment may be a desktop PC, or any other type of device including a notebook PC, a tablet PC, and a smartphone.

The PC 01 transmits, for example, an instruction for controlling the printer 30 , print data, and a setting command to the printer 30 . The CPU 201 controls each component of the PC 01, and executes an OS and control programs such as a print conversion utility 07 to be described later. ROM 202 stores an OS for controlling system operations. The RAM 203 is a memory in which a work area to be used by the CPU 201 is provided. The external storage device 206 stores various control programs such as an application and a print conversion utility 07 .

The input unit 205 is an input device including a keyboard and a mouse for operating the PC 01 . The display unit 204 is a display device that displays information input from the input unit 205 for confirmation, a user interface screen of the OS and application, and messages. The I/F unit 207 is a communication module that transmits and receives data with the printer 30 .

The printer 30 serving as a printing device is, for example, an inkjet printer. The printer 30 includes a CPU 211 , a ROM 212 , a RAM 213 , a print engine 214 , and an I/F unit 215 . The CPU 211 controls each of these components, which will be described in detail below. The ROM 212 stores a program for controlling the print engine 214 . The RAM 213 temporarily stores data such as a program for the operation of the print engine 214 and a setting value received from the PC 01 .

The print engine 214 performs printing on the print medium based on the print data transmitted from the PC 01 . The I/F unit 215 is a communication module having functions such as receiving print data from the PC 01 and transmitting current status information of the printer 30 from the printer 30 to the PC 01 . Here, the status information is status data indicating the status of the printer 30 , and the status data may be transmitted from the printer 30 in response to a request from the PC 01 connected via the I/F unit 215 . The status data includes the operating status of the printer 30 such as “printing in progress” or “standby state”, and “out of paper” and “cover open”. is open)" or "no remaining ink", and the like.

<Software configuration of PC(01)>

The software configuration of the PC 01 will be described with reference to FIG. 1 . A drawing application 02, an OS print system 03, a network (NW) communication control unit 06, and a print conversion utility 07 are operated inside the PC 01 serving as an information processing device installed where possible. Although not shown in Fig. 1, the OS is integrated into the PC 01, and resources of the PC 01, for example, each block in the PC 01 are managed by the OS. In this exemplary embodiment, macOS is used as the OS integrated into the PC 01 .

The drawing application 02 is software that generates drawing data based on a user instruction. Here, the application is software that can run on the OS. Examples of the drawing application 02 include word processing software for document creation, image editing software, and New Year's card creation software. Examples of drawing data generated by the drawing application 02 include PDF (Portable Document Format) data.

When a print request is made, the drawing application 02 outputs the generated drawing data to the OS print system 03 . Based on the acquired drawing data and information about the print settings, the OS print system 03 generates a print job. The generated print job is input to the print queue 05 of the OS standard print function. The print settings can be entered in advance by the user on a setting screen (described later with reference to FIG. 4 ) provided by the OS print system 03 . The information about the print settings includes information such as paper size, paper type, and information indicating which print queue will be used for printing. The OS print system 03 sequentially processes print requests from the drawing application 02 as jobs for each printer connected to the PC 01 .

The OS printing system 03 is OS standard printing software having a standard function (OS standard printing function) for generating print data. The OS printing system 03 spools the drawing data generated by the drawing application 02, and generates the print data in a predetermined format (hereinafter may also be referred to as "standard format") according to the OS standard printing function. . A printer that supports the OS standard print function can interpret print data in a standard format. Accordingly, the OS print system 03 transmits the generated print data to a printer supporting the OS standard print function via the NW communication control unit 06 .

Further, the OS printing system 03 acquires the device model information of the printer via the NW communication control unit 06 to determine whether the printer supports the OS printing system 03. The information acquired for the support determination is not limited to the device model information of the printer, and may be other types of information such as capability information of the printer. Various types of processing in the OS print system 03 are controlled by the OS standard print control unit 04 in the OS print system 03.

The print conversion utility 07 is print control software that makes it possible to issue print instructions using the OS standard print function to a printer that does not support the OS standard print function, and is installed on the PC 01 as necessary. The print conversion utility 07 has a function of converting print data in a standard format into print data in a format unique to a printer vendor. This function will be referred to as a "vendor driver 08" hereinafter, but the vendor driver 08 may not have an equivalent function to that of an existing printer-specific driver, and the vendor driver 08 at least sends print data to the printer. It may be sufficient if the vendor has the capability to convert the print data into a format specific to it. After the print data is converted into print data in a format unique to the printer vendor by the print conversion utility 07, the converted print data is sent to a printer that does not support the OS standard print function via the NW communication control unit 06 do.

A printer that does not support the OS standard print function cannot interpret the standard format print data generated by the OS print system 03, even if print data in the standard format is received by this printer. Accordingly, in the present exemplary embodiment, the print conversion utility 07 converts print data in a standard format into print data in a format unique to a printer vendor that can be interpreted by a printer. Thereby, a printer that does not support the OS standard print function can perform printing using the standard function of the OS print system 03.

Specifically, in the case of a print job for a printer that does not support the OS standard print function, the OS print system 03 converts the generated print data in the standard format to the virtual printer (activated) by the print conversion utility 07. 10) is sent to The virtual printer 10 acts as a printer supporting the OS standard print function via the NW communication control unit, and can receive a print job of the OS standard print function. That is, the OS print system 03 regards the virtual printer 10 as a printer supporting the OS standard print function, and outputs a print job to the virtual printer 10 . The print conversion utility 07 converts print data in a standard format received by the virtual printer 10 into print data in a format unique to the printer vendor, and converts the converted print data to the printer via the NW communication control unit 06. send to In FIG. 1 , the virtual printer 10 is separated from the print conversion utility 07 . However, in the present exemplary embodiment, the virtual printer 10 may be provided as one function of the print conversion utility 07 . Also, although the virtual printer 10 exists in the same PC as the PC provided with the OS printing system 03, the virtual printer 10 may exist in a different server or PC.

Even when the printer supports the OS printing system 03 (that is, even if the printer can interpret print data in a standard format), printing when a print instruction is issued for a printer supporting the print conversion utility 07 A conversion utility 07 may be used. More functions can be provided by using the print conversion utility 07. For example, the OS standard function provided by the OS printing system 03 does not support detailed print quality settings such as color matching processing and adjustments to hue and brightness. That is, the OS standard printing function is limited. However, using the print conversion utility 07, functions equivalent to printer drivers unique to a printer vendor can be provided.

Here, in order to use the print conversion utility 07 from the drawing application 02, the print queue 05 and the print conversion utility ( It may be desirable to register both print queues 09 included in 07). The print queue 09 included in the print conversion utility 07 is a queue for controlling print data output from the virtual printer 10 . If both of these print queues are not registered, the drawing application 02 cannot convert the print data using the print conversion utility 07. Registering the print queue 09 of the print conversion utility 07 enables the print conversion utility 07 to start up the virtual printer 10 . Subsequently, the print conversion utility 07 designates the virtual printer 10 and automatically registers the print queue 05 in the OS print system 03 .

The print queue 09 of the print conversion utility 07 is stored in a storage area for each user. That is, the print queue 09 of the print conversion utility 07 for user A and the print queue 09 of the print conversion utility 07 for user B are registered in respective storage areas different from each other. On the other hand, the print queue 05 of the OS print system 03 is stored in a common area within the system. That is, the print queue 05 of the OS print system 03 is shared by the user A and the user B. The print queue 05 of the OS print system 03 may be referred to as a print queue 05 of the OS standard print function hereinafter.

<Software configuration of the printer>

The printer 30 , the printer 40 , and the printer 50 include an NW communication control unit 31 , a print control unit 32 , and a printing unit 33 , respectively. The print control unit 32 receives print data from the PC 01 via the NW communication control unit 31 and controls the print unit 33 based on the print data to execute printing. In the present exemplary embodiment, the printer 30 and the printer 40 do not support the OS standard printing function, and the printer 50 supports the OS standard printing function. The printer may be an inkjet printing apparatus, or may be an electrophotographic printing apparatus.

<Registration of Print Queue to Print Conversion Utility>

Next, in order to illustrate the flow of registration of the print queue 09 of the print conversion utility 07, switching of screens to be displayed on the PC 01 will be described.

FIG. 2 shows a printer list screen 60 provided by the print conversion utility 07. As shown in FIG. The printer list screen 60 shows the printer's name 61 registered in the print conversion utility 07, a "Setting" button 62 for setting a printer, an "Add" button 63 for registering a printer, and and a "delete" button 64 for deleting the printer. In Fig. 2, "printer 30 (print conversion utility)" is indicated as the name 61 of the printer, and the state in which the print queue of the printer 30 is already registered in the print conversion utility 07 is shown. The word "(print conversion utility)" added to the end of "printer 30" indicates that the printer 30 supports the OS standard printing function through the print conversion utility 07.

When the user presses the "set" button 62 of the printer list screen 60, the print conversion utility 07 opens the printer setting screen 70. As shown in FIG. The printer setting screen 70 includes a printer name edit field 71 , a printer setup location edit field 72 , a “cancel” button 73 and an “OK” button 74 . The print conversion utility 07 provides the name information of the print queue 09 currently registered in the print conversion utility 07 and the installation location information of the printer in the printer name edit field 71 and the printer installation place edit field 72, respectively. to display In the printer setting screen 70 , the user can edit the contents displayed in the printer name edit field 71 and the printer installation location edit field 72 . When the user presses the "OK" button 74, the print conversion utility 07 displays the print queue ( 09) update the setting information. When the user presses the "cancel" button 73, the print conversion utility 07 closes the printer setting screen 70.

When the user presses the "add" button 63 of the printer list screen 60, the print conversion utility 07 opens the printer registration screen 80. As shown in FIG. The printer registration screen 80 includes a printer list 81 . The printer list 81 displays all printers that are connected to the PC 01 and do not support the OS standard function. Here, printers 30 and 40 that do not support the OS standard printing function are displayed. When a printer is selected from the printer list 81 , the name of the selected printer is displayed in the printer name text field 82 , and the installation location of the selected printer is displayed in the printer installation location text field 83 . When the user presses the "Register" button 85, based on the contents entered in the printer name text field 82 and the printer installation location text field 83, the print queue 09 of the printer currently selected in the printer list 81 is ) is registered in the print conversion utility 07 as a new print queue.

When the print queue of the printer is registered in the print conversion utility 07, the print conversion utility 07 adds support information for the OS standard print function created internally based on the information about the registered printer, and the virtual printer 10 ) is activated. Specifically, the print conversion utility 07 configures the virtual printer 10 based on information about the printer (model name, printer name, and installation location information of the printer) and support information (universally unique identifier (UUID) and capability information). start up Thereby, the print conversion utility 07 newly registers the virtual printer 10 associated with the registered print queue 09 and to which the same name as the name (identification information) of the registered print queue 09 is set. The virtual printer 10 may then initiate a response to the OS print system 03 . At the time of registration, the word "print conversion utility" is added to the name of the print queue 09 of the print conversion utility 07 and the name of the virtual printer 10 . When the print queue 09 is registered in the print conversion utility 07 and the virtual printer 10 associated with the print queue 09 is started, the print conversion utility 07 is based on the information returned to the OS print system 03. Thus, the registration command for the print queue 05 of the OS standard print function is executed. Without intervention of a user operation on the screen of the OS print system 03, the print queue 05 is automatically registered in the OS print system 03 also by this process.

When the user presses the "delete" button 64 in the printer list screen 60, the print conversion utility 07 deletes the print queue 09 of the print conversion utility 07 of the selected printer. Also, the print conversion utility 07 stops the virtual printer 10 associated with the deleted print queue 09 . That is, the print conversion utility 07 deletes the virtual printer 10 associated with the deleted print queue 09 . Further, the print conversion utility 07 executes a delete command for the print queue 05 of the OS standard print function to delete the print queue 05 of the OS standard print function. Registration and deletion of the print queue 05 of the OS standard print function can be performed manually from the OS print system 03, which will be described below.

<Registration of print queue to OS print system>

Next, in order to illustrate the flow of registration of the print queue 05 of the OS print system 03, switching of screens to be displayed on the PC 01 will be described. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a printer list screen 90 provided by the OS print system 03. In FIG. The printer list screen 90 includes a print-capable printer list 91 that displays all printers that can be selected for printing. When the user selects a printer from the printable printer list 91 and presses the "set" button 92, the OS printing system 03 displays the printer setting screen 100.

The printer setting screen 100 includes a printer name edit field 101 , a printer installation location edit field 102 , a “cancel” button 103 , and an “OK” button 104 . The print conversion utility 07 provides name information of the print queue 05 of the printer currently registered in the OS standard print function and its installation place information in the printer name edit field 101 and the printer installation place edit field 102, respectively. to display In the printer setting screen 100 , the user may edit contents displayed in the printer name edit field 101 and the printer installation location edit field 102 . When the user presses the "OK" button 104, the OS printing system 03 sends a print queue 05 of the OS standard print function based on the contents of the printer name edit field 101 and the printer installation location edit field 102. update the setting information of When the user presses the "cancel" button 103, the OS printing system 03 closes the printer setting screen 100. When the user presses the "delete" button 94, the OS printing system 03 deletes the print queue of the selected printer and also deletes this printer from the printable printer list 91.

When the user presses the "add" button 93 in the printer list screen 90, the OS printing system 03 displays the printer registration screen 110. As shown in FIG. The printer registration screen 110 includes a registered printer list 111 that displays all printers connected to the PC 01 and supporting the OS standard printing function. Here, the OS print system 03 includes, from a printer 50 connected to the PC 01 and supporting the OS standard print function, capability information including a name and support information for the OS standard print function of the printer 50 . , and display the information on the registered printer list 111 based on the acquired information. In addition, the OS print system 03 also acquires from the virtual printer 10 the name and capability information of the virtual printer 10 that is started by the print conversion utility 07 . Here, the printer 30 is an operation target of the print conversion utility 07, and the virtual printer 10 corresponding to the printer 30 is activated (registered). Accordingly, the OS print system 03 acquires, from the virtual printer 10, capability information of the virtual printer 10 corresponding to the printer 30 and activated by the print conversion utility 07, and based on the acquired capability information to display the information in the registered printer list 111 . The OS print system 03 displays the virtual printer name "Printer 30 (Print Conversion Utility)" as the name of the printer 30 and "Network" as the connection method in the registered printer list 111 .

When the user selects a printer from the registered printer list 111 and presses the "Register" button 113 in the printer registration screen 110, the OS print system 03 sends the print queue 05 of the selected printer to the OS print system ( 03), and close the printer registration screen 110 . When the user presses the "Cancel" button 112, the OS print system 03 closes the printer registration screen 110 without registering the print queue of the printer.

The printer list screen 90 of FIG. 3 displays the state in which the print queue of the printer 30 and the print queue of the printer 50 are registered in the OS print system 03. Although the printer 30 does not support the OS standard print function, a virtual printer 10 corresponding to the printer 30 exists as a result of registering the print queue of the printer 30 in the print conversion utility 07. In this way, the OS print system 03 acquires the name and capability information of the virtual printer 10 corresponding to the printer 30 from the virtual printer 10, thereby setting the print queue of the virtual printer 10 to the OS print system. Register in (03). As described with reference to FIG. 2 , the name of the virtual printer 10 is the same as the name of the print queue registered in the print conversion utility 07 . Accordingly, the OS print system 03 can be regarded as having the print queue of the virtual printer 10 corresponding to the printer 30 registered therein, whereby the print queue of the printer 30 is registered therein.

<Print setting screen>

4 is a diagram showing the print setting screen 120 of the OS print system 03. As shown in FIG. The print setting screen 120 is a screen where the user makes print settings for printing data generated by the drawing application 02 .

The user may designate a printer for printing in the printer selection pop-up menu 121 . The OS printing system 03 displays the registered printers on the printer list screen 90 shown in FIG. 3 as printers that can be selected. In the present exemplary embodiment, the printer 30 that is deemed to support the OS standard print function and the printer 50 that supports the OS standard print function can be selected artificially by the intervention of the print conversion utility 07. They are registered as printers. Accordingly, they are displayed in the printer selection pop-up menu 121 . The user may set the number of prints in the number-of-prints setting text field 122 . The user can set the page (pages) to print using the page setting radio button 123 and the page setting text field 124 . The user may set the paper size for printing in the paper size setting pop-up menu 125 . The user can set the paper size of any of A4, A5, L-size, and postcards that can be printed by the printer. When the user presses the print button 127, the OS print system 03 inputs a print job based on the settings on this screen and closes this screen. When the user presses the cancel button 126, the OS print system 03 closes this screen without inputting a print job.

As described above, in the case of a printer that does not support the OS standard print function, the default value for the name of the print queue registered in the OS print system 03 is the name (identification information) of the virtual printer 10 associated with this printer. am. This virtual printer 10 is associated with the print queue of the print conversion utility 07 . That is, the default name of the virtual printer 10 is the name of the print queue of the print conversion utility 07 .

Here, in the present exemplary embodiment, when the name of the print queue 09 of the print conversion utility 07 is set and subsequently the virtual printer 10 is started using the set name, the PC 01 is connected It is determined whether a device (here, a printer) having the same name as the name after the change already exists on the network. In order for the OS printing system 03 to identify a printer capable of using the OS standard printing function, it may be preferable that there is only one printer with the same name on the network to which the PC 01 is connected. Therefore, if a device (here, a printer) having the same name as the name of the virtual printer 10 already exists on the network, according to the discovery protocol, a number is added to the end of the name of the virtual printer 10 to distinguish it from the name of the existing device.

However, in this case, since the name of the virtual printer 10 and the name of the print queue 09 of the print conversion utility 07 are different, it is difficult for the user to determine that they are the same. In consideration of this, in the present exemplary embodiment, when the name of the activated virtual printer 10 exists on the network, the print queue of the print conversion utility 07 associated with the virtual printer 10 having the changed name The name of (09) is updated.

Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 5, the detail of the above-mentioned process is demonstrated. 5 is a flowchart showing the flow of registration processing of the print conversion utility 07. In FIG. The flow in Fig. 5 is started in response to activation of the print conversion utility 07 by the user. In Fig. 5, the print conversion utility 07 is started, and the name of the print queue 09 registered in the print conversion utility 07 is set. In the following, the print conversion utility 07 is described for performing each step of the process, but in reality, the CPU 201 executes a corresponding program to implement a corresponding function. Not all steps are necessarily executed sequentially in one process, and once processing is shifted to the OS side, it can be called back from the OS. The flow in Fig. 5 illustrates the main processing of the print conversion utility 07 in a simple manner for convenience.

In step S01, the print conversion utility 07 registers the print queue 09 of the print conversion utility 07 using the set name.

In step S02, the print conversion utility 07 based on the information (model name, printer name, printer's installation place information) and support information (UUID and capability information) regarding the print queue 09 of the print conversion utility 07 to start the virtual printer 10 .

In step S03, the print conversion utility 07 determines whether the name of the activated virtual printer 10 has been changed by the discovery protocol. Specifically, first, the print conversion utility 07 determines whether a device having the same name as the name set in the activated virtual printer 10 exists on the network to which the PC 01 is connected. When the print conversion utility 07 determines that a device with the same name exists on the network, a number is added to the end of the name of the virtual printer 10 according to the discovery protocol to avoid giving the same name. For example, it is assumed that "printer 50" rather than "printer 30 (print conversion utility)" is set as the name of the print queue 09 of the printer 30 registered in the print conversion utility 07 in step S01. In this case, the name of the virtual printer 10 is also "printer 50", but the name "printer 50" is already assigned to the printer 50 existing on the network to which the PC 01 belongs. Accordingly, in such a case, the name "printer 50 (2)" is given to the virtual printer 10 by appending the number 2 to the end of the name. If the name of the virtual printer 10 is changed (YES in step S03), the process proceeds to step S04. The determination as to whether a device having the same name exists on the network may be performed based on a device name (eg, Bonjour name) included in information transmitted from each device.

In step S04, the print conversion utility 07 changes the name of the print queue 09 of the print conversion utility 07 to match the name of the virtual printer 10 changed in step S03. For example, if the name of the virtual printer 10 is changed to "printer 50 (2)" in step S03, the name of the print queue 09 of the print conversion utility 07 is also changed to "printer 50 (2)" do.

In step S05, the print conversion utility 07 executes processing for designating the virtual printer 10 having the name set in step S03 and registering the print queue 05 of the OS standard print function. For example, when the name of the virtual printer 10 is changed to "printer 50 (2)" in step S03, the print conversion utility 07 is named "printer" as the print queue 05 associated with this virtual printer 10 The print queue 05 with 50 (2)" is registered in the OS print system 03.

By the above-described processing, in the present exemplary embodiment, when the name of the virtual printer 10 started by the print conversion utility 07 is changed by the discovery protocol, this name is changed to the print queue of the print conversion utility 07. (09) is reflected in the name. Thereby, the name of the print queue 09 of the print conversion utility 07, the name of the virtual printer 10, and the name of the print queue 05 of the OS standard print function match. This creates the effect of making it easier for the user to identify a printer for printing and allowing an appropriate print instruction to be issued. In the above example, step S03 is executed after step S02, but the present exemplary embodiment is not limited to this order. Whether a device with the same name exists on the network can be determined before the virtual printer 10 is started. Subsequently, when it is determined that a device with the same name exists on the network, the virtual printer 10 can be started using the changed name.

Next, a second exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure will be described. In the following description, points in common with the first exemplary embodiment are not described, but only points that are different. In this exemplary embodiment, the print conversion utility 07 notifies the user that a network device with the same name already exists.

Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 6, the detail of the above-mentioned process is demonstrated. 6 is a flowchart showing the flow of the registration processing for the print queue of the print conversion utility 07. As shown in FIG. The flow in Fig. 6 starts in response to the activation of the print conversion utility 07 by the user. In Fig. 6, the print conversion utility 07 is started, and the name of the print queue 09 registered in the print conversion utility 07 is set. In the following, the print conversion utility 07 is described for performing each step of the process, but in reality, the CPU 201 executes a corresponding program to implement a corresponding function. Not all steps are necessarily executed sequentially in one process, and once processing is shifted to the OS side, it can be called back from the OS. The flow in Fig. 6 is only a flow illustrating the main processing of the print conversion utility 07 in a simple manner for convenience.

Steps S10 to S12 in Fig. 6 are similar to steps S01 to S03 in Fig. 5 of the first exemplary embodiment, and therefore will not be described. For example, it is assumed that "printer 50" rather than "printer 30 (print conversion utility)" is set as the name of the print queue 09 of the printer 30 registered in the print conversion utility 07 in step S10. In this case, the name of the virtual printer 10 is also "printer 50", but the name "printer 50" is already assigned to the printer 50 existing on the network to which the PC 01 belongs. Therefore, in this case, the determination result of step S12 is "YES", and the processing proceeds to step S13.

In step S13, the print conversion utility 07 displays the printer name editing screen 130 shown in FIG. The printer name edit screen 130 includes a message for notifying the user that a printer with a set name already exists. The printer name edit screen 130 further includes a printer name edit text field 131 for displaying the currently set name of the print queue 09 of the print conversion utility 07 . The printer name edit text field 131 is an input item that allows a user to edit an input printer name (user input) based on a message prompting the user to change the name on the printer name edit screen 130 . When the user presses the "OK" button 132 on the printer name edit screen 130, the print conversion utility 07 displays the print queue ( 09) is renamed.

The above processing is repeated until the name of the virtual printer 10 does not match the name of a network device (here, printer) existing on the network. For example, it is assumed that "printer 30 (print conversion utility)" is set as the name of the print queue 09 of the printer 30 registered in the print conversion utility 07 in step S10. In this case, the name of the virtual printer 10 is also "printer 30 (print conversion utility)", and this name is different from the name of any other printer existing on the network to which the PC 01 belongs. Therefore, in this case, the determination result in step S12 is NO, and the processing proceeds to step S14.

In step S14, the print conversion utility 07 executes processing for designating the virtual printer 10 activated in step S11 and registering the print queue 05 of the OS standard print function. For example, the print conversion utility 07 is a print queue 05 associated with the virtual printer 10 with the name "printer 30 (print conversion utility)", and a print queue 05 with the name "printer 30 (print conversion utility)". The queue 05 is registered in the OS print system 03.

As described above, in the present exemplary embodiment, the print conversion utility 07 notifies that the name of the registered print queue 09 of the print conversion utility 07 already exists on the network. This notification allows the user to change the name of the print queue 09 of the print conversion utility 07 again. According to this exemplary embodiment, the name of the print queue 09 of the print conversion utility 07, the name of the virtual printer 10, and the name of the print queue 05 of the OS standard print function match. Also, it is possible to avoid a situation in which the virtual printer 10 has a name that the user does not intend, such as a name formed by adding a number to the end of the name of the virtual printer 10 according to the discovery protocol. This creates the effect of making it easier for the user to identify a printer for printing and allowing an appropriate print instruction to be issued. In the above example, step S12 is executed after step S11, but the present exemplary embodiment is not limited to this order. Whether a device with the same name exists on the network can be determined before the virtual printer 10 is started. Subsequently, when it is determined that a device with the same name exists on the network, the user may be notified in step S13.

Next, a third exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure will be described. In the first exemplary embodiment and the second exemplary embodiment, the operation at the time of registration of the print queue 09 of the print conversion utility 07 will be described. Here, the print conversion utility 07 is an application installed in the PC 01, and therefore, when the operation of the PC 01 is ended, the operation of the print conversion utility 07 is also ended. Alternatively, the user can end the operation of the print conversion utility 07. When the operation of the print conversion utility 07 is terminated, the operation of the virtual printer 10 is also terminated. Subsequently, when the print conversion utility 07 is started again, the print conversion utility 07 restarts the virtual printer 10 associated with the registered print queue 09 of the print conversion utility 07 . At this time, there is a possibility that the name of the restarted virtual printer 10 is the same as the name of a network device existing on the network. For example, if a user connects a printer of the same model to a network using another PC, there is a possibility that the connected printer may be given the same network device name (hereinafter also referred to as Bonjour name). . In such a case, the name of the restarted virtual printer 10 is changed by the discovery protocol. In the present exemplary embodiment, in this case, the name of the print queue 09 of the print conversion utility 07 is changed, or the user is instructed to change the name of the print queue 09 of the print conversion utility 07 again. are prompted

Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 8, the detail of the above-mentioned process is demonstrated. 8 is a flowchart showing the flow of registration processing of the print conversion utility 07. In FIG. The flow in Fig. 8 is started in response to the activation of the print conversion utility 07 by the user. In the following, the print conversion utility 07 is described for performing each step of the process, but in reality, the CPU 201 executes a corresponding program to implement a corresponding function. Not all steps are necessarily executed sequentially in one process, and once processing is shifted to the OS side, it can be called back from the OS. The flow in Fig. 8 is only a flow illustrating the main processing of the print conversion utility 07 in a simple manner for convenience.

In step S20, the print conversion utility 07 initializes the index number (n=1).

In step S21, the print conversion utility 07 starts a loop performed for the number of print queues 09 registered in the print conversion utility 07.

In step S22 , the print conversion utility 07 activates the virtual printer 10 associated with the nth print queue 09 based on the information about the nth print queue 09 of the print conversion utility 07 .

In step S23, the print conversion utility 07 determines whether the name of the virtual printer 10 started in step S22 has been changed by the discovery protocol. Specifically, first, the print conversion utility 07 determines whether a device having the same name as the name set in the activated virtual printer 10 exists on the network to which the PC 01 is connected. When the print conversion utility 07 determines that a device with the same name exists on the network, a number is added to the end of the name of the virtual printer 10 according to the discovery protocol to avoid giving the same name.

In step S24, the print conversion utility 07 deletes the print queue 05 of the OS standard print function associated with the nth print queue 09, and the process proceeds to step S25.

In step S25, the print conversion utility 07 performs the processing of steps S04 and S05 in Fig. 5 of the first exemplary embodiment. Alternatively, the processing after step S13 in Fig. 6 of the second exemplary embodiment may be performed in step S25.

As described above, in the present exemplary embodiment, the print conversion utility 07 is controlled so that the virtual printer 10 activated does not have the same name as any other device on the network, even upon reboot. Also, when the name of the virtual printer 10 is changed, the print conversion utility 07 changes the name of the print queue 09 of the print conversion utility 07, and reloads the print queue 05 of the OS standard print function. Register. Thereby, the name of the print queue 09 of the print conversion utility 07, the name of the virtual printer 10, and the name of the print queue 05 of the OS standard print function match. This creates the effect of making it easier for the user to identify a printer for printing and allowing an appropriate print instruction to be issued.

other embodiments

Embodiment(s) of the present invention may also include computer-executable instructions (eg, one or more programs) recorded on a storage medium (which may more fully be referred to as a 'non-transitory computer-readable storage medium'). One or more circuitry (e.g., application-specific integrated circuits) to read and execute to perform the functions of one or more of the foregoing embodiment(s) and/or to perform the functions of one or more of the foregoing embodiment(s). By performing the functions of one or more of the foregoing embodiment(s) by the computer of a system or apparatus, including circuitry (ASIC), and by reading and executing computer-executable instructions, for example, from a storage medium. and/or by a method performed by a computer of a system or apparatus by controlling one or more circuits to perform the functions of one or more of the foregoing embodiment(s). A computer may include one or more processors (eg, central processing unit (CPU), micro processing unit (MPU)) and may include separate computers or a network of separate processors to read and execute computer-executable instructions. can The computer-executable instructions may be provided to the computer, for example, from a network or storage medium. A storage medium may be, for example, a hard disk, random-access memory (RAM), read only memory (ROM), storage in distributed computing systems, an optical disk (eg, a compact disk). (compact disc) (CD), digital versatile disc (DVD), or Blu-ray Disc (BD)™), a flash memory device, a memory card, and the like.

(Other Examples)

In the present invention, a program for realizing one or more functions of the above embodiments is supplied to a system or device via a network or a storage medium, and one or more processors in the computer of the system or device read and execute the program processing is also feasible.

It is also executable by a circuit (for example, an ASIC) that realizes one or more functions.

The present disclosure provides a technique that enables an appropriate print instruction to be issued using an OS standard print function.

While the present invention has been described with reference to exemplary embodiments, it should be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed exemplary embodiments. The scope of the following claims is to be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and equivalent structures and functions.

Claims (14)

A control method implemented in an information processing device by at least one processor executing print control software,
registering, in the print control software, a print queue in which first identification information is set;
determining whether a device to which the first identification information is set exists on a network to which the information processing apparatus is connected, when the print queue to which the first identification information is set is registered in the print control software; and
When it is determined that the device to which the first identification information is set exists on the network, the identification information of the print queue registered in the print control software is identified from the first identification information to a second identification different from the first identification information. A control method comprising the step of changing to information. According to claim 1,
When it is determined that the device for which the first identification information is set exists on the network, the virtual printer to which the second identification information is set as a virtual printer associated with the print queue and communicates with an operating system (OS) standard printing software registered,
When the virtual printer to which the second identification information is set is registered, the identification information of the print queue registered in the print control software is changed from the first identification information to the second identification information. According to claim 1,
When it is determined that the device to which the first identification information is set exists on the network, identification information formed by adding a number to the end of the first identification information according to a discovery protocol is used as the second identification information A control method in which the virtual printer to be set is registered. According to claim 1,
When it is determined that the device for which the first identification information is set exists on the network, an input item for receiving a change in identification information of the print queue registered in the print control software is displayed;
When the identification information of the print queue registered in the print control software is changed from the first identification information to the second identification information by a user input for the input item, it is associated with the print queue and is associated with the OS standard printing software A control method, wherein a virtual printer to which the second identification information is set is registered as a communicating virtual printer. 3. The method of claim 2,
executing, in the OS standard printing software, a process of registering a print queue of the virtual printer to which the second identification information is set, when it is determined that the device for which the second identification information is set does not exist on the network; Further comprising, a control method. 6. The method of claim 5,
When it is determined that the device to which the second identification information is set exists on the network when the print control software is activated, the print queue registered in the OS standard printing software and set with the second identification information is deleted. A control method, further comprising a step. 3. The method of claim 2,
When the printing device communicating with the information processing device does not support the standard format print data, the standard format print data generated by the OS standard printing software is transmitted to the virtual printer and executed by the print control software. , wherein the printing device is converted into print data in an interpretable format. It is an information processing device,
a first registration unit, configured to register, in the print control software, a print queue in which first identification information is set;
a judging unit configured to determine whether a device to which the first identification information is set exists on a network to which the information processing apparatus is connected, when the print queue in which the first identification information is set is registered in the print control software; and
When it is determined that the device to which the first identification information is set exists on the network, the identification information of the print queue registered in the print control software is identified from the first identification information to a second identification different from the first identification information. and a changing unit configured to change to information. 9. The method of claim 8,
When it is determined that the device for which the first identification information is set exists on the network, a virtual printer to which the second identification information is set is registered as a virtual printer associated with the print queue and communicates with OS standard printing software,
and the identification information of the print queue registered in the print control software is changed from the first identification information to the second identification information when the virtual printer to which the second identification information is set is registered. 9. The method of claim 8,
When it is determined that the device for which the first identification information is set exists on the network, according to a discovery protocol, identification information formed by adding a number to the end of the first identification information is set as the second identification information is registered, an information processing device. 9. The method of claim 8,
When it is determined that the device for which the first identification information is set exists on the network, an input item for receiving a change in identification information of the print queue registered in the print control software is displayed;
When the identification information of the print queue registered in the print control software is changed from the first identification information to the second identification information by a user input for the input item, it is associated with the print queue and is associated with the OS standard printing software and a virtual printer to which the second identification information is set is registered as a communicating virtual printer. 10. The method of claim 9,
and when it is determined that the device for which the second identification information is set does not exist on the network, execute, in the OS standard printing software, a process of registering a print queue of the virtual printer for which the second identification information is set. An information processing device, further comprising an execution unit. 13. The method of claim 12,
and delete a print queue registered in the OS standard printing software and set with the second identification information, when it is determined that the device to which the second identification information is set exists on the network when the print control software is started An information processing apparatus, further comprising a deletion unit being 10. The method of claim 9,
When the printing device communicating with the information processing device does not support the standard format print data, the standard format print data generated by the OS standard printing software is transmitted to the virtual printer and executed by the print control software. , the information processing apparatus, wherein the printing apparatus is converted into print data in an interpretable format.

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